$5 Rape Bet Draws Fire From A Victim

Dear Ann Landers: The letter from the Florida moron whose girlfriend bet him $5 that he couldn`t rape her made me furious. How dare he compare his $5 game to the real thing?

I am a 28-year-old woman who was raped six months ago. I was not a victim of date rape. I was a victim of plain, old-fashioned, everyday rape. When a woman is forced to have sex against her will, it is rape. The fact that I knew the man made it no less traumatic.

The creep who raped me had raped others and was caught. He was put in jail but released after a short time. I am going full speed ahead to press charges against him, and the trial is pending. Believe me, it is an ugly and traumatic experience, but I am determined not to cave in. The reason he was walking around free as a bird was because the women he had raped before me didn`t have the courage to prosecute him. I am determined that this sleazebag not be let loose to rape again.

A word to your female readers: If you are raped, report it immediately. The police are trained to work with rape victims. They took excellent care of me. The medical examinations were performed in a hospital. They were unpleasant, but they were extremely important. (No VD or AIDS, thank God.)

There were questions and more questions and then more questions, awful to answer but vital to a complete history and important for the police to help them track down the guy. I hated looking at photographs of scummy criminals, but it had to be done in order to make an accurate identification.

I`d like to tell you about an organization in Austin, Tex., called Crime Victim Compensation. It is a division of the Texas Industrial Accident Board. They help with financial assistance to victims of rape and other crimes as well. They do a fabulous job and were extremely supportive at a time when I felt very much alone.

I hope you will print this letter, Ann Landers. It could help others who are too frightened to speak out. The monsters who rape benefit greatly from that fear, and all too often they go scot-free.

J.S., Dallas

Dear Dallas: Thank you for an informative letter. We spoke with F.E. Donnelly at Crime Victim Compensation in Austin and learned that about 38 states offer this type of help. (Check your phone book under Crime Victim Compensation or call your state attorney general`s office. The only requirement is that the person be an innocent victim of a violent crime.)

The next letter adds a new dimension to the comment from my Florida correspondent:

Dear Ann Landers: A few questions for that fellow who played the $5 game with his girlfriend, who bet him that he could not rape her: Did he threaten the woman, punch her and slap her around, pull her hair and rip her earrings off? Did he call her filthy names and try to strangle her? Did he throw her face down on the floor, terrorize her and hold her captive?

All these things happened to my daughter. It was no $5 game. I`m sick of hearing there is no such thing as date rape and that because she knew the guy she must have asked for it.

West Palm Beach

Dear West Palm: Your comments have put the whole ugly subject in the proper perspective. Thanks for writing.

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